We own the Design and Drill Socket to Me set and find it to be a fun manipulative toy. I use this toy personally with my 3 year old son, and professionally as an occupational therapist working in pediatrics. The contents include a socket wrench, 4 activity boards and 30 multi-colored bolts. As a parent and OT, I love that the toy has no batteries (FINALLY!) and the box that it comes in can store all of the pieces. I love the clicking sound that the wrench makes as it is cranked. I love the bright color scheme and fun design of robot, car, rocket, etc. My son loves to play with functional items at home and he felt proud that he could use a tool just like Grandpa uses. It was neat to see them both play this together and for Grandpa to explain the tools and their function. From an occupational therapy standpoint, this toy offers excellent fine motor, dexterity, visual motor and grasping practice. It requires the use of a fine pincer grasp, wrist deviation, eye hand coordination, stabilization/manipulation of parts, etc. The only cons include: this is part of the "Design and Drill" series and an icon on the box shows a drill. It might be confusing and lead some to think that a drill is included in this toy (though the company does make a drilling toy as well). Also, there are 33 spaces/holes on the activity boards and only 30 total bolts. That left my detail-oriented son wondering why 3 spaces were left empty :) Not a big issue, but he would have liked to have filled every space. Thank you for providing a toy that can encourage my son's development and the development of the children I treat.

I was very disappointed that the "Design and Drill" set did not come with a drill. It is very misleading to have a picture of a drill on the box. That being said, my 3 year old liked the different shapes and has had fun with it.

Was this a gift?:

Yes

Bottom LineNo, I would not recommend this to a friend

Merchant response: Hi Carrie, this is the Socket-To-Me set of the Design and Drill line, so it includes only a socket wrench. If you would like to have a drill instead, you can call us or email us at CS@educationalinsights.com or 800-995-4436 and order items number 4112 or 4115. We will also take back your Socket-To-Me set. It's our Playful Promise to you! If you are not satisfied with your product, you can return it.

The design and drill socket to me is a product where you have to be really creative with your child, because it can become a bit boring. Great tool to incorporate math, counting, and learning colors. Overall, happy with product and I find it very useful for my child's educational needs.

We received this in the mail to review the product. Was excited to try this toy out for my daughter to have some independent play. It is good for working on fine motor skills and my daughter has fun designing where to put the different colored bolts while using the socket wrench and can stay busy for up to 30 mins. Fun shapes and colors, however it is one-dimensional. I wish there was more to the toy in that they connected or made her think about how to build something. Another thing that would be nice is to have 2 socket wrenches come in the box so multiple kids can play at the same time. Also, I wished there were enough bolts to fill all the holes in the shapes.

One of the things I really like about this toy is that it's wonderful for little ones working on fine motor skills. This has kids pinching, and twisting, and lining up the bolts, and really working to get the pieces screwed into their spots. There are no batteries needed here- just some hard (and fun!) work. My youngest two are lefties, and definitely need that fine motor work, and both were able to get the hang of this toy fast.

What a lovely break from duplo! My son loves to tinker and create and this couldn't have come at a better time this summer. The kit has endless projects to keep their little fingers busy and besides the rockets, robots or race cars - there is plenty to be made. Mine juts made a toad, that looked nothing like one, but cheers to their imagination. Excellent for creative skills, spatial thinking and motor skills. Comes with plenty of nuts, bolts and pieces to stay at it all summer!